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Andhra High Court · body

2013 DIGILAW 1048 (AP)

N. Bhumaiah v. State of Andhra Pradesh, Reptd by its Principal Secretary, Revenue Department, Hyderabad

2013-11-21

C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY

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Judgment : This Writ Petition is filed feeling aggrieved by two memos, dated 01.10.2012 and 11.10.2012 of respondent Nos.3 and 4, respectively, whereby they have expressed their inability to demarcate the boundaries in respect of Ac.0.26 guntas of land in Survey No.1330/B, Acs.2.15 guntas in Survey No.1330/C and Acs.4.12 guntas in Survey No.1331/A of Vilassagar Gram Panchayat, Boinapally Mandal, Karimnagar District. The petitioners have earlier filed Writ Petition No.28008 of 2012 feeling aggrieved by the inaction of the respondents in conducting survey and fixing the boundaries of the above-mentioned lands. This Court disposed of the said Writ Petition by order, dated 07.09.2012, directing the respondents to take necessary steps on the petitioners’ applications within a period of four weeks and further observed that if the respondents find any ground for not conducting survey, they shall communicate the same to the petitioners. In compliance of the said direction, the two impugned memos were issued by respondent Nos.3 and 4. The gist of these memos is that though the purported sub-division numbers have been entered in the pattadar passbooks of the petitioners, when an enquiry was undertaken along with the Surveyor on field, no sub-division record was prepared in respect of the above-mentioned lands and that in the absence of such sub-division, unless the consent of all the owners of the lands in the Survey numbers in question are obtained, the boundaries cannot be fixed. Feeling aggrieved by these memos, the petitioners filed this Writ Petition. At the hearing, learned Assistant Government Pleader for Revenue (Telangana area), placed before the Court Circular in Rc.No.N2/1741/2010, dated 18.05.2010. Para 6(b) of the Circular, which is relevant for the present purpose, envisages that F-line petitions/Demarcation petitions received in respect of portions of survey fields in agricultural lands should be converted by Tahsildars as applications for sub-division on payment of balance fee payable, if any, and sub-division should be done in accordance with BSO-34 A para 13 in Andhra area and in respect of Telangana districts, in accordance with CSSLR Circular Rc.No.N1/1408/07, dated 13.07.2007. Based on the above Circular, learned Assistant Government Pleader submitted that if the petitioners are agreeable for payment of the balance fee for sub-division, respondent No.3 will get the sub-division done before demarcating the boundaries of the above-mentioned Survey numbers. Based on the above Circular, learned Assistant Government Pleader submitted that if the petitioners are agreeable for payment of the balance fee for sub-division, respondent No.3 will get the sub-division done before demarcating the boundaries of the above-mentioned Survey numbers. When the Circular referred to above laid down in clear and unequivocal terms that in cases where demarcation petitions/F-line Petitions are filed where the Survey number is not sub-divided, the duty lies on the Tahsildars to covert such applications as that filed for sub-division. In spite of these clear instructions, this Court is unable to understand as to why respondent No.3 has not called upon the petitioners to pay the balance fees payable for sub-division, instead of expressing his inability to survey the land without the consent of all other land owners comprised in the said Survey numbers. This Court has been receiving Writ Petition of this nature day-in and day-out only due to the failure of the Tahsildars to strictly follow the above-mentioned Circular. Instead of requiring the land owners to obtain the consent of the neighbouring land owners in the same Survey numbers, respondent No.3 had needlessly driven the petitioners to filing this Writ Petition by failing to follow the instructions in the above-mentioned Circular. In order to prevent avoidable litigation, respondent No.1 is directed to issue a comprehensive Circular to all the Tahsildars in the State to scrupulously follow the above-mentioned Circular issued by the Commissioner, Survey, Settlement and Land Records wherever applications for fixing the F-line or demarcating the boundaries of part of the lands without sub-divisions are received. In the light of the above discussion, the Writ Petition is disposed of with the direction to respondent No.3 to issue notice to the petitioners calling upon them to pay the balance fees for carrying out the sub-division of the above-mentioned Survey numbers. On payment of such balance fees by the petitioners, respondent No.3 shall initiate steps for conducting sub-division and demarcation of the boundaries as requested by the petitioners. This process shall be completed by respondent No.3 within a period of one month from the date of payment of balance fees by the petitioners. As a sequel to the disposal of the Writ Petition, W.P.M.P.No.41415 of 2013 is disposed of as infructuous.